Christmas Top 5

My favorite things about Christmas this year:

1. Walking through Winterhaven to see the Christmas lights. Both kids loved it!

2. Sewing: The Christmas deadline got me to finish some projects. I just wish I had taken pictures of them! I made a few taggie blankets, lots of beanbags, and a stocking for Haley. Imagine a red stocking hanging next to the other three. :)

3. Christmas cards: If you didn't get one from us, don't be offended. It just didn't happen this year. But I still got excited every day to open the mailbox and find pictures and news from friends.

4. Mary and Joseph Sighting: An unusual couple walked into Wendy's the other day while we were having lunch. They weren't exactly homeless, but the man had a full beard, the woman had long, wavy hair and both were dressed a little scruffy. Trevor stared at them and quickly turned to me: "Mom, I see Mary and Joseph!"

5. Time with Family: My brother Allen and his wife Lori have a boy Trevor's age and a girl Haley's age. They live in Utah and we rarely get to spend time with them so this Christmas was so fun for both families. We also saw Birch's sister Marie and her family who moved to Boston this year. And don't forget THREE missionary phone calls on Christmas!

Haley & Kaitlin

Trevor and Benson at Christmas Eve dinner. Pretty serious faces!

Grandma and Grandpa with the baby girls on Christmas morning.

The Smells of Christmas

A few weeks ago I was baking gingerbread and got hooked on the smell. It lasted for days! It got me into the spirit of Christmas so when it finally went away I looked for other yummy smells that remind me of the holidays.

Trevor gets all the credit for decorating this beauty. If this much candy ended up on the house, just imagine how much was in his tummy!

After gingerbread I found the recipe for cinnamon ornaments. These are equal parts cinnamon and applesauce mixed into a dough, rolled flat and cut into shapes, then baked at 200 for 2-3 hours.

Some of the cinnamon ornaments ended up on the tree and some I tied to rafia to decorate other parts of the house.

Next aroma was an orange-clove-cinnamon potpourri. I don't have one of those mini crockpots so this was simmering on the stove all day.

On Saturday I stopped by a Christmas tree stand and picked up their extra branches. I love the convenience of a fake tree but it's nice to have a little scent of pine.

Thanksgiving in the Sand

Both of our families have started a funny tradition of celebrating Thanksgiving at the beach. Usually whoever we're spending the holiday with will rent a house in Rocky Point but this time we stayed in San Diego. Don't you love the ocean when it's stormy?

Trevor wasn't too sure about getting in the water but he loved the sand!

Haley was squirmy as usual, and it was hard to keep that sand out of her mouth.

Our swimsuit model. :)

Happy Thanksgiving!